UNDP's role & MDGs in South Sudan

At the core of UNDP’s work is promoting the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which were set at the 2000 UN Millennium Summit by world leaders as a commitment to addressing the human condition by 2015.

In South Sudan, as part of advancing a pro-poor agenda in planning processes, UNDP advocated for key development priorities towards the attainment of the MDGs and human development to be incorporated in the first ever South Sudan Development Plan. The Plan will form the basis of Government budgeting and donor programming over the next three years.

The Development Plan refers to the Interim Constitution, which directs the Government to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by building the necessary institutional, human, social and economic capacity, developing infrastructure and social services, and raising the standard of public services.

Recent surveys have shed light on the massive level of poverty and deplorable human development situation in South Sudan. The country endured years of armed conflict which only ended in 2005, five years after the adoption of the Millennium Declaration. The start of work towards these goals was therefore delayed and started from a very low baseline: realistically, most will not be met by 2015 unless an accelerated effort is made to address the challenges posed by the current state of conflict and fragility in South Sudan. National capacities and institutions need to be strengthened to manage initiatives oriented to achieving the MDGs.

Even in 2005, South Sudan was not ready to take all the measures needed to make progress towards the MDGs. Weak institutional capacity of national institutions, weak coordination among sectors, political uncertainty and insecurity in large parts of the country, poor basic infrastructure, weak civil society organizations and limited resources for development are all major challenges to the attainment of the MDGs in South Sudan.

Now is the time to act, as the Government only has an estimated seven years of oil revenue left with which it can fund some of the major investments necessary in social services, infrastructure and agriculture. UNDP is providing technical advice to planning processes, building institutional capacity, and helping to support the development of inclusive economic growth strategies that promote employment, livelihoods and effective delivery of services and reduce inequalities and marginalization of the poor and vulnerable groups.

UNDP Global Partnerships

The MDG Achievement Fund is an international cooperation mechanism whose aim is to accelerate progress on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) worldwide. It supports national governments, local authorities and citizen organizations in their efforts to tackle poverty and inequality. Learn More

UNDP organized a photo contest, in partnership with Olympus Corporation, The Agence France-Presse (AFP) Foundation, and the UN’s Department of Information, to highlight the importance of the MDGs and the inspirational work that is already being done in developing and developed countries to achieve them.LEARN MORE

About the MDGs

World leaders gathered at the UN Millennium Summit in 2000 and signed the UN Millennium Declaration. This document is the foundation for the MDGs, a set of 8 measurable goals for 2015 focused on improving human conditions around the globe.